Opinion: What Basis Are You Voting On?
[Opinion column written by Makai Dickerson] Since the last election we have seen a split within the UBP that first caused a third party to surface as the BDA, which then dismantled to combine with others within the UBP to form the OBA, which by right of seats in the Honorable House of Assembly became the Official Opposition, leaving the UBP a weak yet still relevant party in the house.
Where does this leave us in the upcoming election? The simple truth is, it leaves us pretty much in the same place we were in the last election, which was a choice between the ruling Party and the Opposition made up of the same base as the UBP, with a influx of new faces. The difference being the desire of the OBA to distance themselves from the UBP and be seen as a new party.
When looking at the roll out of candidates from the OBA it is clear that the grass roots of the UBP remains within their ranks given the former UBP MPs remaining in the UBP “safe seats”, and new faces being presented in marginals and PLP “safe seats”.
One might argue that those who occupy the seats deserve to contest them again as they have a proven track record, another may say it is an attempt to keep the status quo while attempting to deceive the public by having them believe they are a new party with their new faces.
Yet another would say that it is simply a political strategy, given the reality that many voters in PLP “safe seats” would never vote for anyone who had anything to do with the UBP, it would only be wise to put forward a new face with the ability to garner votes from different segments of the community [young people, single mothers, black Bermudians etc] in those seats. These are all perceptions to be left up to the voters to take on.
The most important factor in the election however, will be what basis you are voting on. While I will admit that the PLP have made mistakes in their governance I will also stand by them for the many achievements they have made. We are dealing with very hard times due to the economic downfall felt around the world and many of the electorate are at a vulnerable state. They should not be taken advantage of by being given false promises and empty rhetoric [by ether side].
Since the formation of the OBA the people have received nothing from them besides negative responses to anything put forward by the PLP. Whenever the OBA is asked what they would do differently the answer is always the same “we will put out a platform when the election is called”. This is in no way an acceptable answer.
That is akin to someone telling me that the chef I employ to cater dinners I host is preparing unhealthy meals that will affect the health of my guest and that I should hire them instead, yet when I ask what they would prepare differently their reply is, “I will present the menu at dinner time and you can compare it with the current chefs and make a choice then”.
I already know what I can expect from the current chef, yet you want me to make a change before I get an idea of what you will prepare? I don’t need to be constantly told that fried chicken is bad for me and that I need a new chef. I need to be told what your alternative will be before I sit down to eat.
The procrastination of the OBA has me believe that they have yet to develop a plan, and are simply buying time by presenting excuses as to why they will not offer solutions until an election is called.
The last point I would like to touch on is balance. It is clear by the roll out of candidates so far that the PLP lead in respect to a balanced slate of candidates. The PLP have a broader mix of experienced candidates and new faces, as well as young and more seasoned candidates. This is important because in order for a government to truly represent all of the people they must have representatives of all segments of the community.
If three men were on a boat and one fell off and was drowning and out of the two remaining, one was a doctor who never learned to swim and the other a swimmer with no medical experience, both would have to work together to make the save. The doctor would need the swimmer just as much as the swimmer would need the doctor.
This is equally as important in governance, the educated person is needed to make educated decisions on matters that require expertise, and the layman is needed to make common sense decisions on matters that require knowledge via experience and the ability to relate to the matter at hand.
The same goes for those who have political experience versus those who are young and new to politics. While the more experienced politician has a proven track record of getting things done, they will still lack in the knowledge of how to address the needs of the youth today.
The issues of their time of youth are not the issues of today’s youth. Therefore they are needed to show the young people how to put forward their ideas and turn them into reality and to continue on with the work they have started; and the young people are needed to use what they learn from them to address the concerns of their peers.
In closing I will simply say that now is not the time for party rhetoric to win votes, now is the time to present solid plans and utilize all segments of Bermuda to truly move Bermuda forward.
I see this within the PLP. The OBA have yet to remove the milk from their breath and show Bermuda what they are truly about and present an alternative to what we the people know. As it stands the PLP is the Party for the people, an honest look at what the debt entails will prove that.
- Makai Dickerson
The PLP is not the party for the people, it is a party to benefit a few, whilst taking taking and taking from those it professes to work for.
Progressive Labour Party organiser Makai Dickerson congratulates Senator Marc Bean on his success at Tuesday night’s Warwick South Central branch election at St. Mary’s Church Hall. Mr. Dickerson, 28, hopes more young PLP members can break into senior positions following the emergence of 36-year-old Senator Bean…………. The guy is 100% involved with the PLP… Bernews, this is disgraceful, also not allowing any responses.
“The simple truth is, it leaves us pretty much in the same place we were in the last election, which was a choice between the ruling Party and the Opposition made up of the same base as the UBP, with a influx of new faces. The difference being the desire of the OBA to distance themselves from the UBP and be seen as a new party.”
But what if….what if….just what if the OBA really are a NEW party with a NEW vision….this is the question that troubles me. I have personally told the OBA principals this….they need to do a massive push to let the people of Bermuda know who they are and what they are really about….because I like many hear what Makai says and our initial reaction is “yea just the same old party”….but….I also cannot fight the urge to ask…”what if they are just what we need?”…..I need more info…..not political opinion pieces….
agreed!
Brilliant post, just brilliant. Sums up exactly how I feel.
sorry my post above was a response to @Chucky! it didn’t tag underneath sorry
Unfortunately, you do not have a clue what you are talking about.
That article by Makai was 100% grade AAA rubish. Anyone who believes that will believe anything.
Makai Dickerson is an executive officer within the PLP, holding the position of Assistant Party Organiser (West). http://plp.bm/about/officers as noted. When an opinion piece is written as an article on a subject, where the writer has an affiliation with one side, this must be declared, otherwise it is decieving us the public.
I agree he is clueless, alot of my friends and I will not be voting for the PLP this time around. They can try all they want now to make things look better, but we know what they are about. Their hatred has come back to bite them.
As the PLP are the party of Government, maybe it should be made clear who we would be voting for. In 2003 the next day after Jennifer Smith won, the knives came out, and in total breach of the PLP Constitution she was thrown out. In 2007, the word was “don’t worry about the leadership problem, vote us back in and we’ll take care of i”. Well nothing was done and Dr Brown continued his regime. In 2012 it has become very clear that Premier Cox does not have full support, and with the likes of Rolfe Commissiong and David Burch as candidates to join Seputy Premier Burgess and others that the old school are still very much alive.
The PLP is not a party of unity, nor does it have a track record of competence after 13 years. As in 1998, it is time for a change.
Tru dat!! A vote for the PLP will be a vote for the resurection of the Ewart Brown disciples.
That right..
Long live the Brownites!
For this opinion piece to be purportedly written by one of the young up and coming PLP members shows nothing has changed within the Party. After 13 years as Government, this article has not one accomplishment let alone a list showing their achievements to support why the PLP should be re-elected. Instead it is the usual anti anyone else. At least race has been dropped, apart from the sly mention of “wiping milk from their breaths”. Since 1998 there is a generation of voters who know nothing apart from the 13 years of PLP. What has been achieved? A debt of well over $1.2 billion and growing; infrastructure crumbling examples being the Causeway, Heritage Pier, and Government Buildings are at the end of their life in part due to lack of maintenance according to Minister Weeks. Yet all that this opinion piece says is don’t trust the Opposition which indicates the desperation within the PLP. On the other hand maybe they are so out of ideas they don’t want to be re-elected and are throwing the election.
Mark.you are a total joke, and you know it..and I and others like the taste of milk..so you need to get some Listene..and clean your filthy mouth..
Basis?
Still no action or response. This is disgusting.
Interesting read with some very valid points to it but some of the allegories (not sure if that the right word to use for them.) do not seem to quite fit the actual situation but then again they do fit the point the writer is trying to make.
Well this sure is a nice story about the honesty and other virtues of the PLP.
The logic behind the chef allegory is flawed however, and the use of allegories throughout and lack of real details highlights this article as the very type of “party rhetoric” the author says we do not need.
If only every terrible government could be blessed with a worldwide economic downturn to blame all of their failure on!
The ‘Basis’ upon which any responsible voter should cast their vote is not whether the candidate has done it before, albeit badly, but by selecting the candidate that is capable, trustworthy and sufficently driven to do the job right.
I certainly hope that the present regime’s platform isnt based solely on the ‘Devil you know’ philosophy…..
Makai, I respect your opinion, but while you criticize the OBA for not offering solutions I respectfully request that you provide a list of the PLP accomplishments. However, one stipulation, they must not have benefited (monetarily) a PLP candidate, gone overbudget by nore than 50%, or like the Faith Based Tourism deal…full of scandal.
PLP ruined this economy. OBA has the crappy task of cleaning it up.
And PLP had to clean up the mess from UBP…..and the cycle continues…..
Would you mind clarifying what the PLP had to clean up after they took over government? Also, could you explain how they cleaned it up?
I’m honestly interested since I was rather young and not paying as much attention to BDA politics back then.
“Clean up the mess”?
What, the “mess” of full employment? The “mess” of having a steady $100m of national debt? The “mess” of having minimal violent crime? Oh, yeah, they cleaned up alright.
If by mess you having taking over the Government with a surplus then yeah. Tough job. Everything else is unchanged;
Education is still in the the toilet, along with tourism.
Crime is up.
Unemployment is up
And the rampant cronyism is still alive and well itching the PLP.
What mess did the PLP cleanup that you are referring too?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAH
And what a mess the UBP left. Jeez, I would HATE to be the one who had to use up all of that HUGE surplus they left.
Seems to me I remember the PLP employing the same “no platform until the election is called” strategy, especially in the early days, and for the same reason, fear of their ideas being preempted.
Mr. Dickinson, it seems to me that your chef analogy is flawed. It would be more relevant if you posited that the new chef refused to present a menu until the dinner date was set, as opposed to when dinner was due to be served.
Go paint a roof.
Is yours in need of paint? Or how about Dame Lois’? Mine just got painted last year, or are you still believing LaVerne, who has yet to identify the street and house number of the apartment(s) to which she was referring?
How can someone with so many good points to put fourth think all plps present plans have been solid? If the plans were so solid they wouldn’t be doing a One step forward two steps back dance with Bermuda.
Wouldn’t it be true that the UBP had a platform that made many liberal promises with the ability to actually fund them built into the plan? And wouldn’t it also be true that once the UBP presented this platform the PLP just copied it and took the promises further by promising things like free public transport? Only most of these promises never came to fruition because they couldn’t be funded? And the ones that did see the light of day are now being reconsidered because of the PLP government’s debt issues?
While the OBA may not have come forward with an overall grand scheme, I would say that they more than likely have many ideas and plans ready to help improve the lives of all Bermudians and foreign workers living in Bermuda.
While the PLP may have a few achievements under its belt in the last decade, they are definitely responsible for many of the issues that the island is experiencing no matter how many times people like Chris Furbert come forward to point fingers at the UBP government from the 1980′s.
Interesting closing quote from the article… “In closing I will simply say that now is not the time for party rhetoric to win votes, now is the time to present solid plans and utilize all segments of Bermuda to truly move Bermuda forward”…
And yet in his opinion piece the author chooses not to site one single plan the Government has to move Bermuda forward and instead opts to just lambaste the Opposition. Party rehtoric at it’s best. And here I was thinking that the new generation of PLP would be different from the last. Ah well, maybe the next, next generation may come up with a plan to TRULY move Bermuda forward.
Makaii, Congrats on improoved letter writing skills since the last election. One question for you: Are you not referencing the PLP here in this statent referencing deceit?
“another may say it is an attempt to keep the status quo while attempting to deceive the public by having them believe they are a new party with their new faces.”
Isn’t this exactly what the PLP are trying to do post Dr Brown? They have cleaned up, thrown the riff raff out and want us to believe they are different while governing just the same with the same people still pulling the strings? We are paying to fly Dr Brown to the Caymans again why? how much is his consulting fee exactly? Nothing has changed – at all. Paula Cox is the same person that administered the public purse under the worst abuse of it in Bermuda’s history.
You are a confused individual if you cant see your party for the failure they are by now my friend. Another 4 years of them would be not only one more nail in the coffin but more like running the coffin over with a bulldozer.
-Noel
What financial and social position was Bermuda in when the PLP won their first election? And…more importantly, where are we today? Are we better off, or worse off? That is for you to decide.
In my opinion, the election of the PLP needed to happen for the majority of black people in Bermuda. Bermuda was too white! Everything was run by the white man and for the white man. I was actually happy when the PLP came into power. Even though I am white, I was tired of seeing the black people being left in the dust when it came to public education, job training, etc. The white kids generally went to private schools and the black kids were left to fend for themselves. This was not acceptable.
I gave the PLP a chance. I wanted to see them succeed (mainly for all the wrongdoings of the white man in the past). They deserved a great group of black leaders. Initially, I loved what Dr. Brown did for transportation – with the fast ferries. But, to be honest, I can’t say I remember any other major accomplishments by the PLP. Did public education improve for our children? In my opinion, it did not. Did the PLP govern fiscally responsibly? In my opinion, they did not. Did the average Bermudian benefit from the PLP being in power? In my opinion, they did not. Did the exempt companies / expats feel more welcome? In my opinion, they did not. In fact, I believe it is to the contrary now.
So, I feel that I have given the PLP a fair chance at governing. Why not give someone else a chance for a few years? Yes, there are remnants of the UBP in the OBA but a country survives well with a mix of governance. If it is always one party, they slack off because they know they will be reelected. If you put another party in power, they learn from their mistakes. When they come back into power, they are stronger for it.
If you vote the OBA in and you decide after four years you don’t like them, you can vote the PLP back in. This is not something we have to live with for life anymore. We know the people have the power to vote PLP if they want. Thankfully, the people of Bermuda spoke to say we don’t want the white people telling us how to live anymore. I agree any society should not be all white or all black.
The people in Bermuda now need to keep an open mind in this next election voting for the good of all Bermudians (black and white). We need to come together as a community to move forward. What is best for Bermuda – 4 more years of the same or something that could possibly change us all for the better?
I agree with the writer that the OBA should come out with its platform now. Why wait – we Bermudians want to see what you have that might distance yourselves from more of the same PLP!
Bermuda is bleeding. Each and every year we have to pay 80-100 dollars of our blood sweat and tears. Does that beneifit us at all. Hell no. We will then have to refinance or repay the debt, which will cost our blood sweat and tears again. The PLP is trying to fool you into thinking, that this was and is a good thing. We are not blind and we are not stupid.
You make a lot of sense
Oh for christ’s sake….it should be…
On what basis are you voting?
I know. It’s ridiculous isn’t it.
80-100 million dollars!
Well done Kim Wilson!
Really think the article should make it clear that Makai Dickerson is an executive officer within the PLP, holding the position of Assistant Party Organiser (West). http://plp.bm/about/officers
HAHAHAHAHA, this piece is garbage. He engages in exactly what he’s accusing the OBA of.
The main analogy was all wrong. If the chef waited till dinner was being served then it implies he’s already been hired (post election). If the chef revealed his menu at the interview (pre election) then the client would be able to make a decision in whom to hire (elect).
This was clearly NOT vetted by their Press Release Officer (or an adult)
‘his is equally as important in governance, the educated person is needed to make educated decisions on matters that require expertise, and the layman is needed to make common sense decisions on matters that require knowledge via experience and the ability to relate to the matter at hand.’
How many highly educated people are there in the present cabinet that have the so called expertise to run the country? I think there are more layman than anything, and that said they all seem to think they know what they are doing but clearly don’t. Hence why we had transportation issues all last summer and we still have no tabled tourism plan. I don’t agree with what the OBA says on everything but they have to be the better alternative than the PLP. The PLP have failed the country and have allowed people within their organization to use public money to fund their financial and social well being. Party politics is partially to blame. By creating two opposing teams, both only play for their own supporters and constantly oppose each other on every issue rather than working together. This bickering is nothing but a power struggle that in the end only seeks to deceive the people into voting one way or another. At present the PLP’s desire to keep power it seems is not to help you and I, but to control the nations money, which in turn means cars, perks, trips and inflated salaries for their own. At the end of the day it is all about using Bermuda as a Credit Card for their own person spending sprees. Like any credit, the money will have to be paid back at some point! What then Bermuda!?
THese OBA /UBP people HATE and despise the TRUTH because it hurts. Please Makai Dickerson keep up the good work and NEVER be afraid to tell it like it is even if its gonna be an unpopular thing to say. I know that the PLP will reatain power! i aint even worried.
You definitely should be worried.
How can someone who claims to have a brain not grasp something that even a real simpleton can see is a no-brainer??
Totally incapable of any structured analytical thought process. His rubbish will only gain traction with the feeble-minded…..
dickerson the west end plp organiser. he also has noever written so coherently in his life. obviously written by someone else. plp election platform came out in 2003 about two days before the election. plp had zero experience in 1998. your deputy leader is an exdoor man or barman i dont know which. who actually is anyone in the plp that has the fortitude to turn this country around. certainly not the people who created it
you say in the article that you admit the plp made mistakes but you standby them for their many acheivements, pls name them because for what i can see every thing they do they end up reversing it done the line
The PLP are certainly not for the people, get it right now, they are the party for SOME people, that’s for sure, like the one’s they keep making richer and richer. The OBA have a plan for our future, if you bothered to read it they have recommended plans for this island’s recovery. They need a chance because the PLp have had theirs already. By the way the UBP left this country in good financial order when they lost the election, how many people are you trying to brainwash, Dickerson? Only the insane would vote for this current government again.
Makai knows him and i have different political views, but that’s ok. I give him praise for standing out as a young man and dedicating his time to this community! Even though we always don’t see eye to eye when it comes to politics I applaude you for all your hard work and dedication!
Oh dear Makai, this is not looking good for you. Where is LaVerne or Speciagirlwhateversheistoday to provide support in their own unique styles? Nothing, not even a whimper. You’ve been deserted by your own and hung out to dry. Politics is a dirty game.
Makai you didn’t even need to write all that! The UBP knows they were a washed up party that’s why they changed the name to the OBA!
FACT
I’m sorry to say that my family was deep in UBP politics. The truth is the UBP Party was created to take care of the Haves…..not the Have nots.
Now they changed the name to the UBP/OBA to say “hey look at us now”. Also by doing that they have included black Bermudians in their plan to deceive the general public 2 get more votes.
FACT
I don’t know that the UBP was created to take care of the ‘haves’, but I’ve no doubt that they did take care of their own.
But this makes the PLP no different from the UBP. They’ve shown clearly, the same extraordinary lack of support and help for the average Bermudian of which the UBP have long been accused.
People wanted the UBP out of power for a reason. Those same people should want the PLP out for the very same reason.
In many ways, it really is that simple.
Do the OBA have a plan? They’d be pretty darned stupid not to have one. ~this is where I could insert something about a certain party not having a plan and what does that say about them, but I doubt I need to.~